Hunter burst out laughing. “I know it isn’t funny, but…it’s funny.”

She grinned. “I know. Just not when you’re on the receiving end. Unfortunately he’s been a juvenile since he was one. They’d throw him out but his family donated a whole wing just to guarantee they’d keep him here.” She crinkled her nose and shook her head. “Personally, I think he’s just lonely.”

“From the way Lucinda talked, she seems to like him.”

“I think he likes her, too.”

Hunter nodded. “Hold that thought. Let me get your drink and I’ll be back in a sec.”

He walked behind the table serving as a makeshift bar. He didn’t want to cause an uprising by cutting the line, so he leaned over the table. “Anyone want a soft drink?” he asked those waiting. “I’m pouring.”

The attendant shot him a grateful look, but unfortunately for him, they all seemed to want the punch.

“Can I help you?” Hunter asked.

The other man shook his head. “I’ve got it under control but thanks.”

Hunter poured Molly a Diet Coke and walked back to where she waited.

“That was nice of you, offering to help him.”

“It’s all about strategy. I knew they wanted punch.” He winked and held a plastic cup out for her to take.

She wrapped her hand around the cup and took a sip, then licked the cola mustache away with the tip of her tongue. He followed the movement, a rush of lust surging through his veins. It wasn’t the time or the place, but he didn’t care.

He scanned the room for a place to be alone and he found a nearby escape route. He noticed Lucinda dragging her relatives toward them from across the crowded room. “Come on,” he said to Molly, who’d yet to realize they had imminent company.

“Where?” Her eyes narrowed in confusion.

He stepped nearer, then eased the soda cup out of her hand. “Someplace where we can have a few minutes alone,” he said in rough voice.

One caused by the direct view of Molly’s cleavage-visible despite her efforts to dress in an understated way. Her breasts were full and rose enticingly over the lace-edged bra beneath her shirt.

Before she could argue, Hunter tugged on her hand and led her to the nearest door, placing the cup on the table as he passed. A moment later, he’d led them down a short, dark hallway into what appeared to be a storage closet, turning the lock shut behind him. He felt the wall closest to the door for a switch and hit the jackpot. A dim bulb flickered on, giving them enough light to see one another.

“Hunter?” Molly asked, her voice dropped to a husky note. She couldn’t possibly mistake his intent.

He edged closer, feeling the heat of her body envelop him. He inhaled her womanly scent and his muscles tightened with definite awareness. “I couldn’t stand around watching you lick the soda off your lips for a second longer. Not without wanting to help.”

He tilted his head and sealed his lips over hers. Hunter expected to have to coax her into submission; after all, he’d dragged her out of a party filled with people.

Before he could do more than begin his pleasurable mission by sweeping his tongue over the seam of her lips, tasting a combination of Diet Coke and Molly, she became the aggressor. The vixen. She thrust her tongue inside his mouth, dueling and tangling with his like she couldn’t get enough. Need coursed through him. He sank his fingers into her hair and tilted her head so he could get deeper, more thorough access to her luscious mouth, but it wasn’t enough.

She seemed to understand and want more, too. She edged her body closer, aligning her slender form against him. Her breasts, tight and pointy, pressed against his chest, and her hips molded to him with accurate precision. His penis hardened and grew, making its presence known.

Molly groaned in acknowledgment and pleasure, curling her fingers so her nails dug through his shirt into the skin beneath.

Hunter couldn’t remember the last time he’d been so hot so fast. And as her hips rolled in a sensual movement against his, he remembered his fantasy from when he’d laid eyes on her that morning.

Never breaking the kiss, he dropped his hands to his sides. Then he began to pull at the flowing material of her skirt, raising it higher and higher still, his fingers deliberately trailing a path up her silken legs as he finally pushed the material out of the way, his hands cupping her inner thighs.

He broke the kiss and glanced at her. Her lids were heavy, her lips parted and her breathing was ragged. His was none too steady either, need forcibly pummeling his body.

The sounds of the party were distant as he slowly backed them against the wall. He glanced at her for a moment, waiting for her to call a halt, giving her a chance to stop him.

“Please don’t tell me you’re having second thoughts.”

He shook his head. “Hell no.” Hunter ran his finger over Molly’s damp lips, then slid it into his mouth, tasting her again. “You’re delicious,” he said in a husky voice he barely recognized.

Her eyes glazed over, her stare fully focused on his lips. Taking him off guard, she leaned forward and swiped her tongue over his mouth.

“So are you.” A teasing, seductive glint lit her eyes and her lips turned up in a sexy smile.

Obviously, stopping was nowhere on her agenda. Thank God.

Given the green light, he slipped his thumbs beneath the edge of her barely there underwear, finding the soft material warm and damp beneath his fingers.

She moaned, a long-drawn-out sound that shook him to his core, then leaned back, letting the wall support her.

He began to tease her, rubbing his slick fingers over and over her sensitive flesh, ignoring his body’s urges in favor of hers. She was dewy and aroused and from the way her hips were moving, her thighs attempting to clench his fingers in a tight vise, it wouldn’t take long to bring her up and over the edge. He wanted to bring her to climax and he wanted to watch.

At the thought, a throbbing beat began pulsing inside him, but he continued to focus his attention on Molly until she began to tremble and shake, coming apart in his hands.

She went weak in his arms. Hunter waited until she had pulled herself together, meeting his gaze. “Wow.”

“Yeah.” He grinned, pleased with himself. Even if it was a cocky response, he liked that he’d satisfied her.

She straightened and began shifting her clothing, fixing herself. “I owe you one, you know,” she said, her breathing still ragged.

His taut body agreed. “I’m going to hold you to that.” He tilted her chin up and planted a warm, lingering kiss on her lips. “There’s a party going on in the other room,” he regretfully reminded her.

“Yes, there is.” She folded her arms across her chest, studying him with a clear, direct gaze. “A party you never wanted to come to. Just don’t think I don’t know that this-” she gestured between the two of them “-was in direct response to you wanting to escape before you had to deal with Lucinda’s family.”

Her voice sounded certain but her gaze was full of warmth, not pity. She saw deep inside him where no one ever had before. And that made him more nervous than the idea of birthday parties and family gatherings combined.

CHAPTER EIGHT

MOLLY WAS MORTIFIED. She couldn’t believe what she’d let Hunter do to her with so many people just two doors away. And she wanted him to do it to her again. She placed her hands against her cheeks, which hours later, she was sure were still flushed.

After Lucinda’s party, which included Irwin jumping out of a large papier-mâché birthday cake wearing a Speedo, Molly and Hunter spent the afternoon at the small-town library. He poured over paperwork sent over by his firm and Molly read through things as well, jotting down questions she had; the first of which was, what happened to the murder weapon?

Now Molly and Hunter huddled together in a booth at the local pizzeria, waiting for their dinner to be ready. Molly sipped her cola and though she was focused on her father’s case, other things occasionally distracted her. Things like Hunter’s large hands wrapped around a chilled Budweiser and thoughts of what those fingers could do. She crossed her legs, but instead of providing relief, the intense pressure started to build inside her again.

“So let’s talk,” Hunter said, leaning forward in his seat.

She swallowed hard. Talk. She could handle that. “God, I’m horny.”

He blinked.

Molly buried her face in her hands. “I can’t believe I just said that,” she mumbled.

She slowly raised her gaze, expecting to find him laughing at her inappropriate admission. Instead, his eyes were dark, his expression taut and serious.

“If you think you’re horny, try being me,” he said tightly. “At least you already-”

“Shh!” She reached out and placed her hand over his mouth. “I know I started this, but-” She shook her head, embarrassment filling her. “We’re in public.” Slowly, she removed her hand.

He relaxed, a slight smile pulling at his lips. “I’m sure there’s a closet somewhere in the back.”

She rolled her eyes. “Sheesh, you’re bad! You said let’s talk, so let’s talk.”

“I thought that’s what we were doing.”

“Business. Let’s talk business. You know what really bothers me about the case?” she asked in a hushed tone.

“What would that be?” He raised an eyebrow, suddenly serious again.

“The missing murder weapon.” The police had never found the gun, which both played in her father’s favor, since they couldn’t directly link him to the crime, but also made him look guilty, since the autopsy indicated the bullet that killed Paul came from a 9mm Beretta, the same make and model weapon the general owned.

Hunter nodded in agreement. “It’s frustrating that we live in such a technological age, but technology can’t help us now. According to your father, the weapon was stolen over fifteen years ago from a hotel room when he and Melanie went on vacation. But the written report is missing and because it was in a small town that hadn’t yet entered the computer age, we have no documented proof of a stolen gun.”